Seattle-based startup Live Aware Labs recently secured $4.8 million in a seed funding round to further develop its feedback management platform for game developers. The round was led by Transcend, with participation from various other investors. Live Aware’s platform is designed to provide video game creators with tools to receive better feedback, iterate more quickly, and interact closely with a community of players and testers.
Live Aware was founded by Sean Vesce, Nathan Wheeler, and Dave Berger. Sean Vesce, the CEO, is a veteran game developer who previously worked on titles in the Tomb Raider series and was the creative director for the successful indie game Never Alone. Inspired by his experience working closely with the Alaska Native community on Never Alone, Vesce believes that involving the community in the game development process increases the chances of success for developers.
The foundation of Live Aware’s platform is the use of machine learning to analyze feedback from game testers and extract the most useful information for developers to improve their game design. This streamlined process allows developers to quickly receive information and make necessary changes to their games. The platform also offers additional tools such as automated translation in 30 languages and integration with popular game development tools like Unity, Unreal Engine, Slack, Discord, and Monday.com.
The Live Aware platform was born out of the realization by Vesce and Berger that there were no existing tools available for studios to take a player-first approach to game development. The platform enables developers to seamlessly share their games with the community, gather feedback, and implement changes almost in real-time. This approach aims to streamline the feedback process and provide developers with valuable insights to enhance their gaming experience.
Currently, Live Aware is being used by several studios worldwide, including Krafton, GSC Game World, and Believer. The company plans to launch a pay-as-you-go plan in 2025 to make the platform accessible to developers of all funding levels. By leveraging AI and machine learning, Live Aware is revolutionizing the way game developers interact with their communities, collect feedback, and iterate on game design. The platform’s innovative approach to feedback management has the potential to significantly impact the success of future game development projects.
